Issue a structured location schedule
Give each store, elevation, pane, and panel a stable ID. The schedule should include address, contact, time zone, store class, window width and height, mullions, doors, obstructions, glass notes, photos, graphic type, mounting face, artwork code, language, quantity, and status. Avoid burying dimensions in email attachments. Suppliers should price from the same controlled table, with blanks and estimates visibly marked.
Define measurement ownership
State whether dimensions are buyer-supplied, supplier-verified, or field-measured by the installer. Identify tolerances, deduction rules, site-survey deliverables, and who approves the final schedule. If a supplier must measure 100 locations, price that as a separate scope with travel, appointment, and revisit assumptions. Clarify responsibility when construction changes after measurement or a store denies access.
Describe glass and graphic construction
List pane type, tint, coating, existing film, mounting restrictions, safety markings, and known defects. Specify clear, opaque, perforated, static-cling, removable, double-sided, or other graphic routes by use case, together with adhesive, white, blockout, laminate, finish, removability, and viewing direction. Require bidders to identify substitutions and technical exclusions rather than silently pricing a generic vinyl.
Make artwork variation countable
Provide an artwork matrix linking each panel to campaign, language, price zone, promotion, store class, and revision. State whether preflight, resizing, localization, proofing, variable data, color matching, and version-control services are included. Lock file naming and approval authority. A quote for 500 units can change substantially when those pieces represent 5 files or 200 unique files.
Specify installation and access
Include installation dates, store trading hours, mall or landlord approval, induction, insurance, lift needs, ladder limits, parking, loading, electricity, security escort, after-hours work, union or local labor rules, removal of old graphics, glass cleaning, waste disposal, and site sign-off. Ask for unit rates for return visits and inaccessible sites. Separate print-only, delivery-only, and install-inclusive options.
Define packing, logistics, and verification
Require packs by store and elevation with panel IDs, installation drawings, and item counts. State delivery sequence, split shipments, regional hubs, tracking, damage reporting, and replacement process. Require before and after photos from fixed angles plus close images of seams and edges. For a large program, the buyer may audit 10 samples or a defined site percentage using its approved quality plan rather than assuming every upload proves correct installation.
Create a comparable pricing form
Ask every bidder to separate measurement, artwork, proofing, printing by construction, cutting, packing, freight, removal, installation, access equipment, permits, project management, verification, storage, replacement, and taxes or duties where applicable. Include volume bands and change-order rates. State assumptions for schedule, site count, pane count, unique files, and confirmed dimensions. The lowest total is meaningful only when the scope columns match.
Decision table
| Material or substrate route | Cost or price effect | Best-fit use or application scenario | Main risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buyer-supplied measurements | Lower survey cost | Stable sites with controlled recent drawings | Buyer owns errors or changed conditions unless agreed otherwise |
| Supplier field measurement | Higher project and travel cost | Variable or undocumented multi-location estates | Access delays and revisits need clear terms |
| Print-only program | Lower supplier scope | Buyer has trained local installers and logistics | Installation variation can undermine consistency |
| Measured, printed, packed, and installed program | Highest integrated scope | Brands needing one accountable rollout route | More assumptions must be explicit for fair comparison |
Execution steps
- Assign stable store, elevation, pane, panel, artwork, language, and version identifiers.
- Build a controlled location schedule with dimensions, photos, glass, mounting, access, contact, and status fields.
- Define measurement ownership, tolerances, approval, site-change responsibility, and exception workflow.
- Specify graphic constructions, artwork services, color, opacity, removability, packing, and replacement requirements.
- Describe installation access, old-graphic removal, cleaning, permits, safety, equipment, timing, and sign-off.
- Issue one pricing workbook with separated line items, assumptions, volume bands, and change-order rates.
- Score technical compliance, evidence, logistics, project control, and total cost before commercial award.
WowSticker Practical Experience
In WowSticker's practical workflow, multi-location RFQs are converted into one pane-level schedule before pricing. We flag missing dimensions, unclear mounting sides, duplicate store names, mismatched artwork IDs, and sites without access information. WowSticker can quote print, packing, and agreed logistics against that controlled scope, while installation responsibilities are made explicit by location. Store packs carry panel IDs and elevation maps, and photo verification uses standard views. The approved schedule, artwork matrix, physical sample, and exception log remain the reorder basis so later waves do not restart from scattered emails.
Final suitability for What Should an RFQ for Multi-Size Window Graphic Programs Include depends on the submitted artwork, construction, application evidence, quantity, site, and buyer procedure.
RFQ information to provide
- Location count, addresses, contacts, store classes, elevations, pane IDs, dimensions, and measurement owner.
- Glass type, tint, coating, existing film, condition, mullions, doors, obstructions, and site photos.
- Final graphic sizes, panel seams, mounting face, viewing direction, clear zones, and cut shapes.
- Vector artwork, file count, language matrix, variable data, resizing, proofing, and approval authority.
- Quantity by site, panel ID, material construction, artwork version, spare set, and rollout wave.
- Required film, adhesive, white, blockout, laminate, finish, removability, and exposure conditions.
- Installation access, hours, induction, insurance, equipment, permits, old-graphic removal, cleaning, and waste.
- Destination country, regional hubs, packing-by-store, freight, tracking, and damage-replacement process.
- Timeline for measurement, artwork freeze, proof, production, packing, delivery, installation, and verification.
- Budget or target price range plus the required separated pricing and change-order schedule.
Frequently asked questions
Why are window dimensions alone insufficient?
Suppliers also need glass condition, mounting face, mullions, obstructions, viewing direction, access, graphic construction, and installation scope.
Who should own measurement errors?
The RFQ and contract should state who measured, who verified, tolerances, approval steps, and responsibility when a site changes after measurement.
How should artwork variants be quoted?
Use a matrix linking every panel to artwork, language, price zone, campaign, and revision, then separate resizing and version-control services.
Should installation be one lump sum?
A lump sum can be useful, but require assumptions and unit rates for surveys, standard installs, equipment, after-hours work, returns, and inaccessible sites.
What makes bids comparable?
A common schedule, specification, pricing form, exclusions list, and change-order structure keep bidders from pricing different interpretations.
What records support future rollout waves?
Retain the approved schedule, survey photos, pane IDs, artwork matrix, material construction, color sample, packing map, installation photos, and exception log.
Review WowSticker product options or submit controlled project details through wowsti.com.